Child Labor In Ender's Game By Orson Scott Card

According to the International Labour Organization, “the term “child labor” is often defined as work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development. It refers to work that: is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to children.” Child labor is a problem in America as well as around the world. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) of 1938, also more widely known as the child labor laws, were enacted to ensure that when young people work, the work is safe and does not jeopardize their health, well-being or educational opportunities. Orson Scott Card’s award winning novel, Ender’s Game, helps us realize just how generally damaging child

labor can be to children, even fictionally. Card’s illustrations will help bring to light the issues of child labor and the effects of dangerous conditions as it exists in the United States and Geneva, Switzerland.
First and foremost, in Orson Scott Card’s novel Ender’s Game, the human rights issue that is most prominent is child labor and relates to all young characters but mainly our protagonist, Ender.

Genius boy Andrew “Ender” Wiggin was born to save the world. From the small age of five, Ender had a monitor in his neck that watched him and his actions closely. After getting into a fight, the ISF decides that Ender meets their standards and is good enough for the program. At the age of six, Ender is abruptly taken away from his family on Earth and is sent to Battle School to kill and fight. He is in charge of saving all of humanity from these buggers. In this manner, Ender developed many mental issues due to being taken away from his family at such a young age and being put under loads of pressure. In result, Ender ends up hurting people which makes him feel morally wrong and abused. As for the other characters, they are also victims of child labor. Being forced to battle many times a day, having to sleep for a short amount of time and then learn about wars, battle etc.…., repeat, wash, and dry. Ender winds up realizing that he is being used and manipulated. He goes through many nervous and mental breakdowns caused by the stress, pressure, and isolation from Battle School, Command School, and the Bugger War in general. Additionally, the other characters of Ender’s Game were greatly affected by the act of child labor. Take for example, Petra Arkanian, one of the girls at battle

school, (Thank you for the feminism, Card) is extremely sleep-deprived as we notice toward the end of the novel when Ender realizes he is pushing her too hard throughout the simulations. Bonzo de Madrid, commander of Salamander Army, and Stilson, a six-year old boy launchie, both get killed by Ender. Ender killing people can be all tied into the act of child labor. Between the separation of his family and of his actual life, anger issues, or problems in general are common. These children are all tired, weary, and have been shaped to act a certain way, to think of violence as a good thing. Due to this child labor, to their work, bad things happen to all of them. Becoming a corpse, becoming an angry person, becoming controlled. Transforming into a different person, someone their simply not.

Subsequently, child labor is a big issue in the United States.

In the article Child farmworkers in America, it states that the report, "Fingers to the Bone: United States Failure to Protect Child Farmworkers," charges that many young people ages 13 to 16 work 70 to 80 hours a week and risk pesticide poisoning, heat illness, injuries and lifelong disabilities. According to the article "Report says child farmworkers are working under dangerous conditions", the title itself ties directly into Ender’s Game. In the novel, these children are taken at young ages to work, train, and learn. The article also states "U.S. laws should be changed to protect the health, safety and education of all children." In this article, child labor is focused on farmworkers. They are exposed to pesticide poisoning, injuries and heat illness, etc.…. They are forced to forgo their education to work the fields. What child should have to sacrifice their own education and well-being to be treated like a peasant? Why should a child have to sacrifice their own education and well-being at all? It’s our right to an education. It’s our right to have a say in what we do and who we become. The United States Department of Labor clearly states that “the most sweeping federal law that restricts the employment and abuse of child workers is the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).” Child labor is not as big as an issue here in the United States compared to international countries. Here in the United States of America,

we have certain laws and preventions that help protect children from child labor. Many different organizations also help prevent child labor in the United States. For example, we have the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, which has a phone line, text, and a website. You can contact them if you suspect slavery, child labor, or any massive human rights problem.
Moreover, child labor isn’t just an issue in the United States, it’s an even bigger issue in international countries like Geneva, Switzerland. According to The World Counts, more than 200 million children today are child laborers. 73 million of these children are under the age of 10 years old. This is labor abuse at its finest. Abusing children and the number of hours they work, their loss of childhood and education, their loss of themselves. As stated in the article, International children rescued from forced labor, “but the children's campaign helps to show that the oldest U.N. agency is still needed to stop labor abuses around the world.” In the real world, children are forced to participate in labor abuse because they work long hours, get no education, and do not live a healthy life. Again, "Laws should be changed to protect the health, safety and education of all children.” In the article, we get an inside look at a reliable professional on the subject of child labor: "Children are employed simply because they are cheaper and more compliant than adults," said Neal Kearney, general-secretary of the Brussels-based International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers Federation. This is not only abuse, but manipulation. In these international countries, most of them are developing countries. Uneducated, frail children who do not know any better than what they have been taught.

As a final point, child labor affects many places and children around the world. Even though there are ways to prevent child labor, there are no ways to completely end it. Orson Scott Card did a wonderful job giving a fictional example of child labor through Ender’s Game. Child labor is very harmful in many ways to children and does damage them mentally, physically, socially, and morally as we see in the novel. There are steps that we can take if we all come together and become educated on and aware of child labor topics. Sadly, this is the world. Humans, but no humanity.